Iran squad in race against time for World Cup readiness amid US-Israel war

Iran’s head coach Amir Ghalenoei ‌believes his coaching and fitness staff would have their work cut out getting the ⁠squad ready for ⁠the World Cup at their training camp in Turkiye, with most of the players having been out of action for seven weeks.

The country’s ⁠domestic Persian Gulf Pro League season was suspended after the United States and Israel attacked Iran on February 28, starting a regional war, and will not resume until after ⁠the World Cup.

Of the 30-man squad Ghalenoei named on Saturday, 22 play for Iranian clubs and have been restricted to a Tehran national team training camp since friendlies against Costa Rica and Nigeria in Antalya in late March.

“Naturally, I am not fully satisfied with ‌the players’ level of readiness,” Ghalenoei told the Iranian federation’s (FFIR) magazine before the departure for Turkiye on Monday.

“But with a training camp that is approximately two and a half to three weeks long, we can make up about 20 to 25 percent of this shortfall.

“We need to raise our domestic-based players to the level required by the modern game,” he added. “In terms of age profile, I believe our domestic ⁠players are in a good position, but there are still ⁠areas that need improvement.

“We must continue our work in the Turkiye camp with determination and optimism.”

Iran will play The Gambia in a friendly on May 29 before Ghalenoei names his final 26-man squad for the World ⁠Cup campaign by the FIFA deadline on June 1.

The FFIR still hope to schedule another friendly in Turkiye and will ⁠play a match behind closed doors against Puerto Rico at their ⁠US base camp in Arizona, providing they can enter the country without any issues.

“I hope that in the first four or five days before our opening World Cup match, we can reach suitable physical conditions,” ‌Ghalenoei said.

“The training camp in Turkiye, despite all the surrounding distractions and side issues, has become a crucial stage of our preparation.”

At the World Cup, Iran will take ‌on ‌New Zealand on June 15 and Belgium on June 21 in Los Angeles before rounding out their group fixtures against Egypt five days later in Seattle.